“I usually get mail from them but never talked to them before, so that was the first time ever hearing they wanted to talk to me,” said McCray, who lives about an hour north of Cincinnati.

“... It’s a great offer but really unexpected. I never thought they recruited up here, and so I’m really excited about it.”

Oklahoma linebackers coach Tim Kish reached out to T-M coach Mo Douglass recently, and on Monday McCray and Douglass called Kish. Stoops was also on the line, so McCray had a chance to speak with both.

“[Kish] told me he liked my film a lot,” he said. “He has high interest in me and liked me as a person.

“[Stoops] pretty much said the same thing. He really likes me and wants me to come down there some time and meet my family.”

McCray now has 11 offers, including some from the Big Ten’s top programs. Illinois, Michigan, Penn State and Purdue have offered, as well as SEC programs Kentucky and Tennessee.

So far, those four Big Ten teams, the Vols and Sooners are sticking out to McCray, who hopes to make some visits soon but does not have any planned.

The new staff at Penn State offered McCray, who is not concerned about the scandal surrounding the program.

“I talked to the linebacker coach [Ron Vanderlinden],” McCray said. “He really likes me and wants me to come up for a visit, and he’s telling me the past is in the past and they have moved on.”

Ohio State, where McCray’s father played and teammate Cam Burrows is committed, is showing interest but has not yet offered. He visited Ohio State for the Buckeyes’ junior day a few weekends ago.

“We didn’t talk about an offer or anything,” he said. “They said they just had to keep evaluating and stuff like that.”